Waterfront Real Estate Information

The one-month numbers for May reveal encouraging pending activity with Pending Sales up 37.7 percent.  The result of May's strong pending activity will have a telling impact on the Months Supply of Inventory numbers when examined next Month.

Nationally, the interest rate dropped to 4.88 percent on a 30-year fixed conventional mortgage.

The Hoosier economy appears to be among the strongest of all states as the nation continues to recover from the recession. Figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis show Indiana's Gross Domestic Product grew 4.6 percent in 2010, compared to the national rate of 2.6 percent. That's the third highest growth rate in the U.S., behind North Dakota and New York. In a Studio(i) conversation, Ball State Economist Mike Hicks says the robust recovery in Indiana is impressive. 

Indiana's 2010 GDP growth outpaced all neighboring states, including Michigan, which is regarding the new figures as positive news. The Detroit Free Press reports Michigan's 2.9 percent increase during the past year is being consiered by economists as a clear sign the state's deep recession is over.

Even though Indiana's economic expansion is among the national pacesetters, there is still work to do as the recovery takes hold.

The state's unemployment rate is hovering around 8 percent, although it has dropped below the national mark for the first time since June 2003.

AVOID CHANGING JOBS:

A job change may result in your loan being denied, particularly if you are taking a lower-paying position or moving into a different field. Don’t think you’re safe because you’ve received approval earlier in the process, as the lender may call your employer to re-verify your employment just prior to funding the loan.

AVOID SWITCHING BANKS OR MOVING YOUR MONEY TO ANOTHER INSTITUTION:

After the lender has verified your funds at one or more institutions, the money should remain there until needed for the purchase.

AVOID PAYING OFF EXISTING ACCOUNTS UNLESS YOUR LENDER REQUESTS IT:

If your Loan Officer advises you to pay off certain bills in order to qualify for the loan, follow that advice. Otherwise, leave your accounts as they are until your escrow closes.

AVOID MAKING ANY LARGE PURCHASES:

A major purchase that requires a withdrawal from your verified funds or increases your debt can result in your not qualifying for the loan. A lender may check your credit or re-verify funds at the last minute, so avoid purchases that could impact your loan approval.

Two major industry surveys reaffirm again that RE/MAX, which leads in per-agent productivity in both reports, has the most productive sales force in the business.

The results of this year’s REAL Trends 500 and the RISMedia Power Broker Report are telling: RE/MAX averaged over 14 transaction sides per agent in both reports – more than double the competition. In the REAL Trends 500 survey, RE/MAX holds 21 of the 25 spots on the survey's new list of Top 25 brokerages by Transaction Sides Per Agent.

What's more, the Power Broker Report shows that RE/MAX agents averaged $2.9 million in sales volume – 62 percent more than all other agents in the rankings.

Home sales are on track to outperform last year, even though the market doesn’t have the benefit of the home buyer tax credit. This is thanks to sustained economic growth, the slowly recovering jobs picture, and historically high affordability conditions, NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun told a packed room on Thursday during the Residential Economic Update at the 2011 REALTORS® Midyear Legislative Meetings.

As expected, the number of closed sales and the median sale price of homes are down year-over-year (March 2011 vs. March 2010). It is likely we'll report larger percentage decreases in those measures next month. Neither is particularly concerning to REALTORS® because of the April 30th federal home buyer tax credit deadline that pulled sales forward last year.

REALTORS® have advised consumers for awhile now to review housing data in the long-term until the impact of the tax credit recedes. While the impact won't be as great after April, those who took advantage of the credit had until September 30, 2010, to close their transaction. This means that October 2012 is the soonest a true year-over-year comparison can be made.

Until then, pay most attention to the historical graphs for each indicator or measure of the statewide housing market - you will see stability. Add that to continued low, but rising, interest rates, and qualified buyers couldn't ask for a much better time.

Stability won't turn into growth without consumer confidence, so we're watching jobs numbers and unemployment claims closely, both of which are headed in the right direction. We're also watching - and advocating for changes to the mortgage industry that will ensure access to adequate mortgage capital for qualified buyers.

If you believe your property taxes are too high, you only have a short time to file an appeal.  Each County may have a different time frame for filing appeals.

Do not miss your county's 45 day deadline.  Check with your Counties appropriate countdown clock immediately. 

I had a great sales year during 2010.  With the increased sales, I ended the year as the #3 RE/MAX Individual Agent for Indianapolis.  This took a lot of work especially since the mortgage part of the process has been a little more challenging.

If you have a home to sell in our Central Indiana area, please send me an email or call me.  I would love to talk with you about the market and provide my market analysis for your home.  I list and sell a lot of homes NOT on water so they can then purchase a home on water.  On average, my listings sell within 50 days!

I just looked over all my sales going back to 1999 and confirmed that on average, my listings sell within 50 days.

This is for all types of properties.  If you have a home on water or NOT on water - I use the same extensive marketing efforts. 

Once we list your home we spend about 8 hours focused on marketing materials, flyers, postcards AND an intensive marketing effort on the internet.  We submit your listing information on MANY internet websites.  We hire a professional photographer for most of our listing pictures and we also create Virtual Tours for all our listings. 

Research tells us that about 87% of the buyers start their search on the internet and we work hard to make sure your home is noticed so it will sell more quickly!

For the first time in six months, home sales in the 54 U.S. markets surveyed in the RE/MAX National Housing Report are greater than one year ago. The year-to-year sales difference has been improving for three consecutive months. In January it turned positive with a 0.7% increase in sales from January 2010. The trend has been led by several cities experiencing double-digit sales growth.